Bubble artist may bring boost

It turns out there is something that hasn't been tried on the Strip yet. But if the "Mega Bubble Show" catches on, it may not be as easy to have three copycat shows as it is to pile on more hypnotists and magicians.

Creator Fan Yang already is stretching his resources by spinning off his surprise off-Broadway hit, "Gazillion Bubble Show." His wife, Ana Yang, will keep the one-person show going in New York while he attempts to launch it here. And according to the show's publicist, the only understudy for either of them is Fan's brother.

The show is scheduled to open Saturday at the Steve Wyrick Theatre in the Miracle Mile Shops at Planet Hollywood. If the afternoon show takes off with its ambitious schedule of 13 performances per week -- three on Saturdays -- it could be a huge boost for magician Wyrick and his underperforming theater and club.

Yang -- who was born in Vietnam and grew up in Yugoslavia -- is most often described as a "bubble artist," using the medium of the soap bubble for all sorts of stunts and illusions. The New York show opened about this time last year, a nine-day booking that has since become an open-ended run. Home versions of his bubble kits became a cottage industry. ...

The Amazing Johnathan says he will probably move into the Harmon Theatre/Krave nightclub after "Fashionistas" closes there at the end of February. He says he is still waiting for a new theater to be built elsewhere, but doesn't want to lose his momentum on the Strip after abruptly leaving the Sahara last week.

Hypnotist Anthony Cools wanted to clarify last week's column about that still-undisclosed new theater space. Cools says he would put a show into the theater as a tenant, but it would not be either his hypnotism show or "Ooh La La," the topless show he produces. Both are happily ensconced at Paris Las Vegas, he says.

The column didn't say Cools was moving, but left room for conjecture. Producer Bill Caron was in the final stages of contract talks this week with a new late-night comic headliner to replace Amazing Johnathan at the Sahara. ...

The Blue Man Group fessed up about a long-running feature of its show after being sued in Chicago by a California grandfather, who didn't enjoy being chosen for the "esophagus cam" stunt.

In each show at The Venetian and elsewhere, one of the Blue Men ventures into the audience and purports to jam a small camera probe into an audience member's mouth. The plaintiff contends the camera was covered with blue paint and nasty grime from the theater floor, and that the invasive action damaged his mouth.

The Blue Man Group responded with a news release saying, "We are disappointed that this false claim forces us to reveal the truth behind one of our most popular theatrical devices."

The film footage seen by the audience is a prerecorded medical video, the statement explains, and the Blue Men contend the camera never really goes inside anyone's mouth. The sequence remains in The Venetian show.

Next thing you know, they'll be telling us they don't really drag anyone backstage and hang him upside down to make a painting. ...

"The Soprano's Last Supper" is still coming to the Riviera, but not until Tuesday. The interactive dinner show originally planned to open this week. ...

Friends of Clem Zeleski will gather Feb. 9 to remember the late dancer who died in November and watch a multimedia tribute. The native Las Vegan performed in "Lido de Paris" when still a teen, and in more recent years toured with a tribute to Fred Astaire.

The memorial will be at 1:30 p.m. in the Clark County Library theater, 1401 E. Flamingo Road. ...

The Super Bowl is big for the sports books, but not so much for shows you can see other weekends. The weekend does draw star names such as George Strait and Sammy Hagar to the Strip, but several big shows will take Sunday off. They include Blue Man Group, "Defending the Caveman," "Love," "Mystere" and "Zumanity."

"Monty Python's Spamalot" is opting for a counterprogramming approach, offering a "Men in Tights" package Sunday that includes a post-show cocktail reception with returning star John O'Hurley for $69.

Mike Weatherford's entertainment column appears Thursdays and Sundays. Contact him at 383-0288 or e-mail him at mweatherford@reviewjournal.com.